Oklahoma Teen Savagely Beaten in anti-Gay Attack

There was a party. Eighteen-year-old Cody Rogers, an LGBT teen, attended along with other of his friends. Also at the party, however, were some violently homophobic teens. It seems that some female attendees of the party had invited their boyfriends. And, that’s where the trouble began. Cody says that he could “…hear the homophobic slurs from the other room.” When asked to leave, one of the homophobes refused. Instead, he did what any real man would do: He attacked the girl who, presumably, had asked him to leave. With the girl being his friend, Cody went to her rescue. The attack turned on him. He was pushed to the ground by the homophobe and beaten unconscious. Pictures reveal the severity of the attack. It was brutal.

The attackers were charged with simple assault. Simple assault!!! This was a clear-cut hate crime. The homophobic slurs came well before the “simple assault” as well as during it. So why, then, is this classified as a “simple assault”? Simple. Because Oklahoma has no hate crime protection for the LGBT community. So, as was the case with Cody, you can get the shit kicked out of you by some pea-brained homophobic woman beater, have him call you every homophobic slur he can think of while he’s committing his crime of pure hate, and the worst thing that will happen to him is he’ll get charged with simple assault. That has to change.

It’s worth noting that Oklahoma has a lawmaker, (R) Mike Reynolds, himself an elected homophobe, has a history of attempting to pass through anti-LGBT legislation. Just last week, his proposed bill that would’ve stripped the LGBT community of protection from discrimination was defeated. I have no doubt he’ll attempt to re-introduce another, reworded bill that would do the same damage. It’s what people of his mentality do.

At a time when the nation, and the world!, has the issue of bullying and anti-LGBT discrimination in the front of their collective minds, we’re reminded yet again that there’s still lots and lots of work to be done. And, it needs to be said again that for someone as young as Cody’s attacker, a fellow teen, to be so violently homophobic, it’s obvious that the re-education hasto start with the adults. His attacker wasn’t born with that level of hatred. No one is.

That level of hatred is taught. It’s taught by intolerant politicians who continually attempt to legislate their own prejudices and hatred. It’s taught by religious leaders who preach hatred and condemnation in the name of God. (perhaps, before their next sermon, they should meditate on 1 John 4:8). It’s passed down from parents who, for whatever reason, has been immersed in intolerance and bigotry. Make no mistake: The cultural shift has, in fact, begun. But, as is evident with the savage beating Cody endured, we’ve still got a long way to go.

Hats off to Cody! He didn’t wilt under the pressure of a brutal attack, an attack brought on simply because of who he is. Instead, he’s turning that negative event in his life into a positive. He’s chosen to become part of the ever-growing army to fight against hatred and intolerance against people, in general, and the LGBT community in particular. He’s launched a facebook page to help stop the brutality. Welcome aboard, Cody. You’re an inspiration to many.